Renée Jean
Renée Jean is the business and tourism reporter for Cowboy State Daily and is based in Cheyenne. Previously, Renée spent seven years covering energy and agriculture in North Dakota and Montana. She has won many writing awards over a 30-year career, and has written magazine articles for Guideposts.
Latest from Renée Jean
Wyoming Rare Earths Deposit Near Wheatland Has Potential To Be World’s Richest
On the heels of other Wyoming rare earth discoveries and breakthroughs, one high-grade deposit owned by American Rare Earths near Wheatland, Wyoming, has the company thinking it has potential to be the world’s richest.
Renée JeanDecember 24, 2023
Cheyenne’s Harley-Riding Santa Really Came From North Pole
Santa has been spotted riding a Harley in Cheyenne lately. This particular Santa’s helper happens to actually be from North Pole, Alaska, and knows more about reindeer and Kris Kringle than most.
Renée JeanDecember 23, 2023
Go Pokes! 10-Foot Santa Riding Steamboat Celebrates Christmas & Wyoming Cowboys
Mary Meyer’s house in Cheyenne gets a lot of attention this time of year. That’s because of the custom-made 10-foot steel Santa riding a bucking bronco that celebrates Christmas and the Wyoming Cowboys.
Renée JeanDecember 22, 2023
FTC To Delay $25 Billion Albertsons - Kroger Merger; Study Says It Could Hurt Market
The Federal Trade Commission in court filings suggests it will take until Jan. 17 to make a decision about the $25 billion Kroger - Albertsons grocery merger. At the same time, a new study suggests it would hurt the labor pool.
Renée JeanDecember 20, 2023
Rocky Mountain Power Customers To Get $9 Million Rebate On Overpaid Costs
Wyoming Public Service Commission approved an 11th-hour settlement Tuesday that will refund $9 million in overpayments to Rocky Mountain Power customers, lowering a rate hike for the first six months of 2024 from 8.3% to 5.5%.
Renée JeanDecember 20, 2023
Wyoming’s Famous 96,000-Acre Pitchfork Ranch Is For Sale For $67 million
The storied and historic Pitchfork Ranch that’s older than the Cowboy State itself has been posted for sale by a real estate company in Thermopolis with a list price of $67 million. This will be only the third time in history that the 96,000-acre ranch has changed hands.
Renée JeanDecember 19, 2023
Historic Stanley Hotel Sells For $475 Million, Ghosts Included In Deal
The historic Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado, made famous by Stephen King’s horror novel and movie “The Shining,” is selling to an Arizona nonprofit in a $475 million dollar deal that will include 58 new apartments and the construction of a film center.
Renée JeanDecember 19, 2023
Wyoming Military Officials Don’t Believe Report Sentinel Missile Program Could Be Cut
Wyoming officials and military experts don’t buy a recent Bloomberg report suggesting the Sentinel missile program, which is set to replace aging Minutemen III missiles overseen by F.E. Warren, is in danger of being terminated.
Renée JeanDecember 18, 2023
Riverton’s Mushroom Man Taking His Funky Fungus Drinks To Huge Vegas Show
Daniel Stewart, aka Riverton’s “Mushroom Man,” hopes an invite to one of the world’s largest food shows in Las Vegas will help launch his High Country Fungus line of mushroom coffees, cocoas and chai lattes.
Renée JeanDecember 17, 2023
Postal Service Likely To Move Cheyenne’s Mail Processing To Denver, Casper’s To Billings
At a public forum in Cheyenne on Tuesday, the postal service said it is likely to move mail processing from Cheyenne to Denver and is considering moving some mail processing in Casper to Billings.
Renée JeanDecember 13, 2023
Postal Service Moving Mail Processing To Denver From Cheyenne
The United States Postal Service is spending $40 billion to “modernize” the nation’s postal system. That’s going to mean moving some mail processing operations to Denver from Cheyenne, and it could mean losing your local postmark unless you ask for it.
Renée JeanDecember 12, 2023
Wyoming’s Trona Mines Prepare For Fight Over BLM’s Rock Springs Management Plan
Sweetwater County’s trona mines are among mining sectors upset by the Bureau of Land Management’s proposed Rock Springs Resource Management Plan, and they’re getting ready to fight about it.
Renée JeanDecember 12, 2023
Even After 137 Years, Cheyenne’s Nagle-Warren Mansion Still A Showstopper
There’s a reason the historic Nagle-Warren Mansion was favored by presidents, generals and Buffalo Bill Cody. It’s still a showstopper 137 years after it was built. Today, two-star Michelin chef Jas Barbé hosts holiday afternoon and high teas at the bed and breakfast.
Renée JeanDecember 10, 2023
Buffalo’s Pie Zanos Is Next Wyoming Restaurant On 'Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives'
Food Network superstar Guy Fieri is featuring the restaurant Pie Zanos in Buffalo on the Dec. 15 “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” The restaurant is owned by Renee Tiller, the daughter of the late former U.W. football coach Joe Tiller.
Renée JeanDecember 10, 2023
Wyoming Author Craig Johnson Releases 20th Annual Christmas Story And Tour Dates
It's that time of year again when Wyoming author Craig Johnson releases his annual Christmas story and goes on his annual tour to tell the story. This year, in a book named “Recidivism," Walt Longmire crosses paths with a Houdini dog named Harry.
Renée JeanDecember 09, 2023
Wyoming Helicopter Linemen Make Crazy High Salaries For Crazy Dangerous Work
On their own, flying helicopters and servicing power lines -- hundreds of feet in the air -- can be dangerous. Together, working power lines from a helicopter is one of the most dangerous — and most highly paid — professions on the planet.
Renée JeanDecember 09, 2023
Wyoming To Pay 8.3% More For Electricity, Not 21.9% Rocky Mountain Power Wanted
Rocky Mountain Power has crunched the official numbers and told Cowboy State Daily on Thursday that Wyoming electricity rates will go up 8.3% beginning Jan. 1. That’s less than half the 21.9% the utility company had asked for.
Renée JeanDecember 08, 2023
Kroger Forcing FTC’s Hand To Approve $25 Billion Merger With Albertsons
A Dec. 15 deadline is now looming for the FTC to make a decision on the proposed $25 billion merger between grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, after Kroger forced the agency’s hand with a filing that claims it’s met the FTC’s requirements.
Renée JeanDecember 06, 2023
Live Horse Racing Vote In Cheyenne Postponed; Commissioners Angry Over Bogus Flyer
The Laramie County Commission on Tuesday postponed a proposal for live horse racing on the Cheyenne Frontier Days grounds. Commissioners said they were angry over a misleading flyer that said they could use eminent domain to force it to happen.
Renée JeanDecember 06, 2023
Wyoming And Taiwan Have Something In Common — A Huge Labor Crunch
Taiwan might seem like an unlikely place to look for ideas to solve Wyoming’s labor force crunch, but it turns out the small island has a lot in common with the Cowboy State. So officials from both locations are working together on finding solutions.
Renée JeanDecember 03, 2023
Good Housekeeping Names Casper As Premier Travel Destination, Not Jackson
Hold my beer, Jackson. Good Housekeeping's 2024 travel guide is out and it ranked Casper as the premier western destination in Wyoming, not Jackson or Yellowstone.
Renée JeanDecember 03, 2023